The 2017-18 NBA MVP has been All-Star James Harden’s for much of the season.

The Houston guard leads the league in scoring at 30.7 points per game and is averaging 8.7 assists, 5.4 rebounds and shooting 44.8% from the field, 36.7% on three-pointers and 86.4% from the foul line, and he’s doing that for the team with the best record at 61-14.

Harden finished second in MVP voting last season and followed it up with another outstanding performance this season. In USA TODAY Sports’ weekly MVP rankings, Harden has been No. 1 for all but two weeks.

But then there is Cleveland star LeBron James and his push for the award.

The argument for James as MVP can be made, or at the least for giving James a first-place vote. There has been just one unanimous MVP winner (Steph Curry in 2016). Someone other than Harden will receive first-place votes. James will get some of them as perhaps will another player or two such as Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant and Curry.

At 33 years old, James – the winner of the MVP in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 – is wrapping up another fabulous season: 27.6 points, career-high 9.1 assists and career-high 8.6 rebounds and 54.7% shooting, including 36.5% on three-pointers. He has also recorded career-bests in triple-doubles (16) and double-doubles (46).

In the past 25 games, James is averaging 29.5 points, 10 rebounds, 9.8 assists and shooting 55.2% from the field and 39.4% on three-pointers.

In 15 seasons, this is among his three best, and for a player with high mileage on that body, it looks like he’s going to play in all 82 regular-season games for the first time in his career. If he received demerits for resting/sitting out games in previous seasons, he gets credit for playing in every game.

Also, consider the roster turmoil the Cavs have endured. They lost Kyrie Irving (while Houston gained future Hall of Famer Chris Paul), Isaiah Thomas’ return was a disaster, Kevin Love (James’ best teammate) has missed 22 games and they’re working with a roster that was remade at the trade deadline.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) drives the ball around Miami Heat forward James Johnson (16) during the first half at American Airlines Arena.(Photo: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)

If team success is part of the MVP equation, James’ Cavs will end up with at least the same number of victories Oklahoma City did last season when Thunder guard Russell Westbrook won the award, and it’s possible the Cavs reach 50 victories.

The stain on James’ season is January, a month in which the Cavs went 6-8 and he had his worst stretch, shooting just 22% on three-pointers. His rebounds, assists, field goal percentage and foul shooting were the lowest of any full month of the season. It was also Cleveland’s only full month in which it posted a negative net-efficiency rating.

The Cavs had a messy January, and Harden and the Rockets do not have such a bad month on their resumes.

The Cavs have also allowed 111.7 points per 100 possessions (also a difficult to stop 112.2 offensive rating) with James on the court. Take him to task for defense, but also consider he’s trying to reach his eight consecutive NBA Finals. He knows better than any current player what’s required to win in the playoffs vs. the regular season.

And several voters will look at Houston’s dominant season and Harden’s excellence and conclude he’s the MVP. That may be the best answer. Like Kobe Bryant’s one MVP, James may end his career with four MVPs when he probably deserved one or two more.

From #TheJump: I've won another convert to my "the NBA needs two awards" campaign! Because there's a difference between who's having the best, knockout, most-extravaganza of a season (James Harden), and who is the NBA's best player (No surprise, Paul Pierce doesn't agree with us) pic.twitter.com/lbyP8YR4e8

ESPN’s Rachel Nichols has advocated for two awards – one for MVP and one for best player. It’s a way of acknowledging a player who had a tremendous season while acknowledging the best player in the world, which James has been for the past decade. The NFL and Major League Baseball have multiple ways in which to honor top performers.

This isn’t a hot take saying James should be the MVP over Harden. It’s a reasoned look at why James as MVP is not preposterous. James won’t win, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t deserving.